Walmart bulk ammo reliability test results

B

Buckshot Barry

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I went to the outdoor range today and ran a 50 round test of the popular Walmart bulk .22 ammo in my stock M&P 15-22 and Ruger MK II 5.5 bull. Here are the results, best being listed first.

1. Federal Auto Match - In addition to this test, I've ran 100's of rounds of Auto Match in both guns. Never had any issues.

2. Federal 550 Bulk - no issues here either. This was the first time firing this round in both guns.

3. Winchester M-22 - today this round did very well. When my M&P 15-22 was new, I got some jams.

4. Winchester 333 / 555 Bulk - when it works, it works, but I had 2 rounds out of 100 that didn't go bang after 3 tries. Also 3 rounds failed to fully cycle the MK II. Ejection was ok, they just didn't make the bolt go far enough back to pick up the next round.

5. Remington Golden 225 - it was even the "improved" version. Bad, bad, bad. Failure to feed and dirty. The MK II had fewer issues than the 15-22

Hope this helps someone.
 
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So YOU'RE the one buying up all the Walmart ammo! Haha.

Thanks for posting your results. Good to see. Make sure you check your Winchester M-22 ammo to see if it falls in the recall lot. It's lot numbers GD42L or GD52L, in case you didn't hear about it.
 
Decipher said:
So YOU'RE the one buying up all the Walmart ammo! Haha.

Thanks for posting your results. Good to see. Make sure you check your Winchester M-22 ammo to see if it falls in the recall lot. It's lot numbers GD42L or GD52L, in case you didn't hear about it.
Click to expand...

Yep, I check this link almost every day. Good point about the M-22. I got lucky and my stash was ok

Find 22 Long Rifle ammo in stock at Walmart
 
Decipher said:
Thanks for that link! That's awesome.
Click to expand...

Around Acworth, GA most Walmarts get their ammo in after 6:00 PM and roll the cart out at 7:00 AM the next morning to those that are in line. For some reason (wink, wink) hot items never show up at some stores sporting goods counters even if they are listed as in stock. Not much you can do about that. Best to just chill and find another store with a better policy.
 
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I've shot a fair amount of all the ammo you've mentioned. My 15-22 had a couple stovepipes or FTF's on the M*22 when new, but for the past thousand has fired everything without a hiccup.
If I had your list, based on my experience this past year, it would be listed in reverse order. Seriously. I hunt Golden's more than anything, they run perfectly in my 15-22 and M&P22.

I'm wondering if there's something wrong with your gun?

My M&P22 is very picky, my 15-22 is the honeybadger of .22 ammo.
 
All of the test ammo was purchased in the last 12 months except for the Federal 550 Bulk. It may be as much as 10 years old.

Wish we could trade. I only have 2 boxes of the Remington 225 Goldens. About 7 boxes of the Win 333 / 555 Bulk.

I sure like Auto Match.
 
Over this last Thanksgiving I scored NINE (9)!!!! boxes of the 550 Federal bulk ammo. I was elated. Unfortunately, the elation only lasted until my first range trip. My 15-22 had been a non-picky eater, until it tasted the 550 Fed bulk pack. On average, two "Fail to Eject" stoppages per 25 round mag (various mags, not just one), all during two range trips using up one box. I suppose this really isn't bad, but after darn near 100% (not quite, but real close) reliability, it burst my bubble.

Unfortunately, my favorite range has been damaged in a fire, so I have not gone shooting with the 15-22 to see if other ammo now causes the same.
 
I also have have more than expected FTE's with M-22, but again also on a new rifle with less than 500 rounds through it. Hopefully it settles out as I have 3K rounds of the stuff...

The Federal (Champion Bulk), I've got about 2K rounds of it, and have been reading of some having issues, but I ran 100 through it today and had no problems, which was a relief.

Also have 1K of the much maligned Remingtons, but not even going to bother using it in the 15-22, just saving it for when I get a 22LR M&P or a GSG...

My 15-22 eats CCI MM's and Tacticals like candy, just hard to find much of it right now :(. I did order some Stingers also, hopefully no issues with the increased loads...
 
Went to the range today to try out a 30-06 rifle, and while there, fired the 15-22, as well, just to check reliability of the little 22.


In order:

25 rounds Blazer, no issues.
25 rounds Winchester Super X Hollow Points, no issues.
25 rounds 550 Federal Bulk, 2 FTEs.
25 rounds Winchester Super X Round Nose, no issues.
25 rounds Winchester 333 bulk, no issues.
25 rounds American Eagle, no issues.
25 rounds Blazer, no issues.
25 rounds Winchester Super X Hollow Points, no issues.

Today's rage trip mirrors my experience with the 15-22 and the ammo I have. The gun really is not a picky eater, but the Federal 550 Bulk Pack is the least reliable ammo for my gun. An average failure rate of 10% is what it produces for my 15-22. Considering I have about 3000 rounds left of the 4950 rounds I scored on Thanksgiving, I think I will live with it! :)
 
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